Upgrade or start again?

John.Smith1955

John.Smith1955

John.Smith1955

Associate
Joined
31 Jul 2022
Posts
14
Location
London
My current PC has started to fail and I am in two minds (1) to upgraded my existing PC or (2) buy a new pre-build one. Below is the spec of my current PC:

- Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4790K CPU @ 4.00GHz 4.00 GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
- 1TB SSD.
- 24 Gb RAM.
- Windows 10.

I use the computer as a mainly for gaming but also photography and surfing the internet.

I happy to upgrade a couple of parts however not do a completely rebuild it. If that is the case I would prefer to get a new pre-build PC.

So would you upgrade or start again and what would you suggest for a budget £2,000.00-£2,500.00?
 
When you say it is starting to fail, can you give examples. Is it overheating? Blue screening? GPU artifacting? RAM errors?

If you look through Windows/System log, it may point out the issue. It could just be something as simple as reinstalling Windows or a PSU or thermal paste and you are good to go.

With no further info, my first thought would be the PSU as you don't say what it is so could be a low quality unit failing or maybe over the last week's very warm weather, issues may have been of a temporary nature.

Your budget is very healthy but you need to include your monitor resolution and what you play and targeted frame rates to help the guys here zero in on your requirements.
 
Hi Noughtboy,

Thanks for coming back so quickly.

In terms of failing it started this time last year, and since then trying to make do. The may problems makers are the Wi-fi, memory and graphic card. I reinstalled windows twice now terms of errors it is from blue screens of death from watching YouTube to gaming, there is also freezing and in the worst case the PC not even turning on. Over Christmas a RAM memory card was causing the computer not start so had to remove it and never been able to put it back in or the PC will not start. The graphic card had to be removed and re-installed to even get output serval times.

In terms of the current monitor is a 4K @ 60 Hz screen in terms what I play it is games like Assassin's Creed, Flight Simulator, and Battlefield and I also do some Photoshop. In terms of targeted frame rate I happy to read your comments / advice but there but between 30-60 sound about right.

Thanks again.
 
There are many components that could be causing your issues but the one that connects them all is the most likely culprit and that is the motherboard. 1080ti is still more than capable and with new cards just around the corner you are in a position to wait if you want to keep using that card. I do not really see anyway to upgrade your current system if the mobo is the failing component, if the psu is faulty then I guess you do not have a spare to test with.

If you are open to reusing the gpu then you can get the base to a new pc for a very reasonable price in the current market.

My basket at OcUK:

Total: £646.63 (includes delivery: £11.70)​









​

Can add a new M,2 drive for sub £100 and you have an excellent new PC.

If you prefer you can get very similar to the above PC in a prebuild from OCUK but you will have to pay around a £200 premium for builing it and warranty and to get them to ship without a gpu you would have to ring them up and speak to them.

Here is a prebuilt to consider.

My basket at OcUK:
  • 1 x Intel Enthusiast Gaming Bundle - Monster Hunter Rise plus Hitman III and Dolmen (SKU: XX-028-IN) = £0.00
  • 1 x OcUK Tech Labs Intel 12th Gen Midi Gaming PC Configurator (SKU: FS-021-TL) = £1,181.88
    • Case: 1 x Lian Li LANCOOL 215 Mid-Tower aRGB Tempered Glass Black
    • Processor: 1 x *Build* Intel Core i5 12400F up to 4.4GHz Turbo - Six Core, Twelve Thread Processor
    • Motherboard: 1 x MSI MAG B660M Mortar WIFI DDR4 - Intel B660 DDR4 Micro ATX Motherboard
    • Cooler: 1 x Arctic Liquid Freezer II A-RGB High Performance CPU Water Cooler - 240mm
    • Memory: 1 x Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 PC4-25600C18 3600MHz Dual Channel Kit
    • Graphics Card: 1 x Sapphire Radeon RX 6500 XT Pulse Gaming 4GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card
    • Primary Solid State Drive M.2: 1 x Crucial P2 1TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 3.0 NVMe Solid State Drive
    • Power Supply: 1 x Seasonic Focus GX-750 750W 80+ Gold Modular Power Supply
    • Operating System: 1 x Microsoft Windows 11 Home 64-Bit DVD - OEM (KW9-00632)

Total: £1,195.98 (includes delivery: £14.10)​




​

I put in the terrible RX 6500xt just as a placeholder, if you want them to ship without a gpu so you can reuse your old one then you would need to contact them.
 
Intel Core i5-12400F 2.50GHz (Alder Lake) Socket LGA1700 Processor - Retail
CP-6AR-IN
£125 (incl. VAT)
£99 (incl. VAT)
Find out more
Kolink Citadel Mesh Micro-ATX Case - Black
CA-051-KK
£46 (incl. VAT)
Find out more
Microsoft Windows 11 Home 64-Bit DVD - OEM (KW9-00632)
SW-18J-MS
£120 (incl. VAT)
£108 (incl. VAT)
Find out more
Haz123 said:
There are many components that could be causing your issues but the one that connects them all is the most likely culprit and that is the motherboard. 1080ti is still more than capable and with new cards just around the corner you are in a position to wait if you want to keep using that card. I do not really see anyway to upgrade your current system if the mobo is the failing component, if the psu is faulty then I guess you do not have a spare to test with.

If you are open to reusing the gpu then you can get the base to a new pc for a very reasonable price in the current market.

My basket at OcUK:

Total: £646.63 (includes delivery: £11.70)​

​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​

Can add a new M,2 drive for sub £100 and you have an excellent new PC.

If you prefer you can get very similar to the above PC in a prebuild from OCUK but you will have to pay around a £200 premium for builing it and warranty and to get them to ship without a gpu you would have to ring them up and speak to them.

Here is a prebuilt to consider.

My basket at OcUK:
  • 1 x Intel Enthusiast Gaming Bundle - Monster Hunter Rise plus Hitman III and Dolmen (SKU: XX-028-IN) = £0.00
  • 1 x OcUK Tech Labs Intel 12th Gen Midi Gaming PC Configurator (SKU: FS-021-TL) = £1,181.88
    • Case: 1 x Lian Li LANCOOL 215 Mid-Tower aRGB Tempered Glass Black
    • Processor: 1 x *Build* Intel Core i5 12400F up to 4.4GHz Turbo - Six Core, Twelve Thread Processor
    • Motherboard: 1 x MSI MAG B660M Mortar WIFI DDR4 - Intel B660 DDR4 Micro ATX Motherboard
    • Cooler: 1 x Arctic Liquid Freezer II A-RGB High Performance CPU Water Cooler - 240mm
    • Memory: 1 x Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 PC4-25600C18 3600MHz Dual Channel Kit
    • Graphics Card: 1 x Sapphire Radeon RX 6500 XT Pulse Gaming 4GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card
    • Primary Solid State Drive M.2: 1 x Crucial P2 1TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 3.0 NVMe Solid State Drive
    • Power Supply: 1 x Seasonic Focus GX-750 750W 80+ Gold Modular Power Supply
    • Operating System: 1 x Microsoft Windows 11 Home 64-Bit DVD - OEM (KW9-00632)

Total: £1,195.98 (includes delivery: £14.10)​

​
​
​
​

I put in the terrible RX 6500xt just as a placeholder, if you want them to ship without a gpu so you can reuse your old one then you would need to contact them.
Click to expand...
Drop the graphics card and drop windows 11 and use your windows 10 and you’d have enough spare to grab a large PCI-E Gen4 NVME to round the build off.
 
Intel Core i5-12400F 2.50GHz (Alder Lake) Socket LGA1700 Processor - Retail
CP-6AR-IN
£125 (incl. VAT)
£99 (incl. VAT)
Find out more
Kolink Citadel Mesh Micro-ATX Case - Black
CA-051-KK
£46 (incl. VAT)
Find out more
Microsoft Windows 11 Home 64-Bit DVD - OEM (KW9-00632)
SW-18J-MS
£120 (incl. VAT)
£108 (incl. VAT)
Find out more
Thanks Haz123 and MissChief,

I would like to upgrade to Windows and 11 so will add that in, I have ATX case so I will use that. I also have the Corseair RM 750 X so in two minds to order the that items and play it by ear. In terms of the motherboard, memory, and processer, would there be any advantage in terms of future proofing spending a little more to get that last longer?
 
Good psu so certainly reuse it. Is an argument and use case for almost all the Alderlake CPUs , just ignore the 12900 and you cannot really go wrong. Would help to know what case you are going to be using so we can advise on coolers.

Using your case + psu + gpu you could then get.

My basket at OcUK:

Total: £942.41 (includes delivery: £10.50)​








​

This will last many years and when you wanted a new gpu you could just slot it in. New gpus may require a new psu but until they are released we just do not know.
 
John.Smith1955 said:
Thanks Haz123 and MissChief,

I would like to upgrade to Windows and 11 so will add that in, I have ATX case so I will use that. I also have the Corseair RM 750 X so in two minds to order the that items and play it by ear. In terms of the motherboard, memory, and processer, would there be any advantage in terms of future proofing spending a little more to get that last longer?
Click to expand...
You may be able to use your windows 10 product code to upgrade to 11.
 
That is a very old fashioned style of case. Do you actually use the drive bays ? It has very limited airflow with just 2 x 120mm fan and no support for AIO radiators so you would be limited to a tower cooler. I would be looking for a new case, you can get understated ones and they are not all rgb bling.

Example

www.overclockers.co.uk

Fractal Design Meshify 2 Midi Tower Case - Black Solid

Order Fractal Design Meshify 2 Midi Tower Case - Black Solid now online and benefit from fast delivery.
www.overclockers.co.uk www.overclockers.co.uk

Fractal cases are on the expensive side but are not to bling and this one comes with 3 x 140mm fans. If you were to use a 240mm aio mounted to the roof it would give you all the airflow you needed. Lot of other choices so look for one you like at the price you like.
 
John.Smith1955 said:
Thanks for your help, will be nice to get back gaming and well within my budget but I save that for the graphics card later in the year.
Click to expand...
That 12700K build suggested by Haz123 is really solid and you can upgrade to a 13700K series down the line if you really want.

I'd happily buy a 12th gen CPU now even with 13th gen coming - I'd focus more on the GPU as that makes a bigger difference. RTX 4080 with a 12700K is an well balanced build (expected gen on gen performance improvement taken into account).

12900K is silly and a waste.
 
Hi JollyJamma

I personal do large updates every 3-5 years so will not be change that quickly. But in terms of the graphics card will get this upgrade and see what is coming done the line at the end of the year.
 
Hi Haz123,

Copy over OC order below.

1 X Fractal Design Meshify 2 Midi Tower Case - Black Solid - £184.99
SKU: CA-098-FD
1 X Intel Core i7-12700K 3.60GHz (Alder Lake) Socket LGA1700 Processor - Retail - £419.99
SKU: CP-69Z-IN
1 X Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound (3.5g) - £5.99
SKU: AC-000-AC
1 X MSI Pro Z690-A WIFI DDR4 - Intel Z690 DDR4 ATX Motherboard - £219.95
SKU: MB-36D-MS
1 X Kingston HyperX Fury Beast RGB 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 PC4-28800C18 3600MHz Dual Channel Kit - £149.98
SKU: MY-29B-KS
1 X WD Black SN770 1TB SSD M.2 2280 NVME PCI-E Gen4 Solid State Drive (WDS100T3X0E) - £125.00
SKU: HD-58F-WD

Tried to order and both "pre-order":

www.overclockers.co.uk

Corsair Vengeance LPX Black 32GB (2x16GB) 3600 MHz AMD Ryzen Tuned DDR4 Memory Dual Kit (CMK32GX4M2Z3600C18)

Order Corsair Vengeance LPX Black 32GB (2x16GB) 3600 MHz AMD Ryzen Tuned DDR4 Memory Dual Kit (CMK32GX4M2Z3600C18) now online and benefit from fast delivery.
www.overclockers.co.uk www.overclockers.co.uk

www.overclockers.co.uk

EK Water Blocks EK-AIO 240 Basic All In One CPU Water Cooler - 240mm

Order EK Water Blocks EK-AIO 240 Basic All In One CPU Water Cooler - 240mm now online and benefit from fast delivery.
www.overclockers.co.uk www.overclockers.co.uk
 
That ram is recommended because is just around the cheapest 3200mhz DDR4. Intel is very forgiving with memory but is always best to check the mobos QVL List.

Pick the next cheapest and then check the QVL list. MSI is great and you can jsut paste in the memory code to check if it is on the compatabilty list.

www.msi.com

PRO Z690-A WIFI DDR4

PRO series motherboards, tuned for better performance by Core Boost, Memory Boost, Extended Heatsink Design, M.2 Shield Frozr, USB 3.2 Gen 2x2, Lightning Gen5, Front Type-C, 2.5G LAN, Wi-Fi 6
www.msi.com www.msi.com

With it being a Fractal case the mountings will most likely be in sensible spots so go for an Artic Freezer II 240mm , comes in rgb or non rgb.
 
If not too late, I'd switch from artic silver 5 to a more modern paste. The silver 5 is conductive so any mess and you have the potential to fry your mobo(I used to use arctic 5
myself).
I went noctua nt-h2 but if you want arctic then mx-4 or mx-5. These pastes once applied should last without having to reapply, and they're non conductive
 
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